CHARLESTON, W.Va. — House Speaker Tim Armstead says the Federal Emergency Management Agency has been quick to respond and inspect homes damaged by the historic June flood, but more needs to be done to aid victims who continue to wait for individual disaster assistance money.
“I’m not trying to be critical, I’m just saying I think there’s some needs that we need to meet,” Armstead (R-Kanawha, 40) said on Wednesday’s MetroNews “Talkline.”
“You have people who just have no where else to live. They’re living with family or there’s still people in shelters, so there needs to be sort of some assistance in that middle step.”
Armstead will be hosting two community meetings in Kanawha County this week to address those long term housing needs and to discuss flood relief efforts.
“We just want to bring everybody together and answer questions,” he said. “Hopefully help people to continue to rebuild.”
The meetings are listed below:
Clendenin Fire Department
Clendenin, WV
Thursday, July 7 at 7 p.m.
Elkview Baptist Church
Elkview, WV
Friday, July 8 at 7 p.m.
Thousands of homes and businesses were damaged or destroyed after the June 23 storm hit parts of central and southeastern West Virginia. Some structures will not be able to be repaired or will take some time to get repaired, Armstead said.
“We’re not talking about just a week or two. In a lot of these cases, we’re talking about months of temporary housing,” he said.